Carcassonne Central
Carc Central Community => Reviews & Session Reports => Topic started by: Whaleyland on February 13, 2016, 01:43:20 PM
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Element Match-Ups are a new series of weekly challenges for all members of CarcassonneCentral. These threads are intended for members to test these combinations without the interference of other elements or expansions. We want to know what you think about the pairing. Consider this a quasi-scientific survey in that you are only playing with these two elements and the base game — nothing else! New match-ups are released every Friday-Saturday (depending on time zone), but the old pairings will always be there so never hesitate to add your two cents worth to the discussion (even if the thread is over 180 days old!).
This week our elements are THE SHEPHERDS (from Hills & Sheep [Expansion #9]) and THE RIVER (III) (from Big Box 5). When the Big Box 5 released, Hans im Glück rather boldly decided to stamp new sheep symbols on a number of River titles, thereby making the expansion unique to the box. But the real question is: does the addition of these symbols mean that The River (III) and The Shepherds are intended to be companion expansions? The Shepherds grow off of fields, every expanding their flocks of sheep, while The River is a one-time tile bomb across the landscape of the board. Together, do they make a better experience than apart? Do people really use the pre-printed sheep on The River tiles? Who on earth thought this was a good idea?! Let the world know.
The elements are set, the challenge is issued, and now it is for you to decide whether these elements work well together or are terrible companions. Summarise your experience below in however much detail you wish, and feel free to share any strategic advice you have for other players taking the challenge.
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I've decided to jump right in on my response this time since I've actually tried these two before. The addition of any pre-printed Sheep features on tiles definitely adds an element of desire to the game, something that can also be seen in Halflings I and The Shepherds. Unlike other sheep, the pre-printed ones don't disappear when the wolves come or when somebody scores. People can just keep scoring for these forever. Placing them on the River tiles, which are start tiles, seems to be a rather smart move since those tiles will be on the board for the longest, thereby maximising the potential that the pre-printed sheep will be scored repeatedly. However, the fields do run the high risk of being enclosed early, as often happens in my games with the River, at which point the Shepherd will have to "escape" in a fashion and the pre-printed sheep will be worthless from then on. Still, the benefits seem to outweigh the risks and I am always in favour of tiles in one expansion having features from another printed on them. The River seems to be a good and repeated choice in this regard (see also pre-printed Vineyards, Inns, and the Volcano).
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I've decided to jump right in on my response this time since I've actually tried these two before. The addition of any pre-printed Sheep features on tiles definitely adds an element of desire to the game, something that can also be seen in Halflings I and The Shepherds. Unlike other sheep, the pre-printed ones don't disappear when the wolves come or when somebody scores. People can just keep scoring for these forever. Placing them on the River tiles, which are start tiles, seems to be a rather smart move since those tiles will be on the board for the longest, thereby maximising the potential that the pre-printed sheep will be scored repeatedly. However, the fields do run the high risk of being enclosed early, as often happens in my games with the River, at which point the Shepherd will have to "escape" in a fashion and the pre-printed sheep will be worthless from then on. Still, the benefits seem to outweigh the risks and I am always in favour of tiles in one expansion having features from another printed on them. The River seems to be a good and repeated choice in this regard (see also pre-printed Vineyards, Inns, and the Volcano).
I agree entirely, although I've never played with them together (the logic does make sense, as with the enclosement of farmers by rivers)